However, the feedback was the same: they all needed a clean feedstock of just the LEDs or the LEDS on their circuit board. While each employed different technologies, all said that recycling these materials would be possible in the near future.
To find a future solution, we talked to emerging recycling technology research groups ( Imperial CollegeĪnd GeMMe). Unfortunately, today’s recycling technologies cannot recover these materials from end-of-life products. Yet, there is enough to make another LED bulb if we can capture it effectively. The amount of these materials per LED is extremely small, to the point where it seems insignificant. We learned about the magic of n-doping and p-doping and how the ratio of gallium nitride to indium nitride leads to the emission of different light spectrums. We paid particular attention to the material composition of the bulbs, looking at LEDs at a micro scale to understand their critical material content. Even for the bulbs that do make it into the recycling system, our current recycling technology isn’t able to recover their critical materials. As a result, the consumer recycling rates for light bulbs in the UK are around 1%. Either people aren’t aware of the regulations, or it’s too much effort to get the bulb to the correct place for disposal. When LED bulbs stop working, they should go into the electronic products recycling system, requiring a householder to visit a civic amenity site or light bulb recycling point. To deliver these energy savings, light bulbs have become high-technology products, containing a complex mix of materials, including a variety of critical materials. LEDs switch on instantly, create good quality light and offer dramatic improvements in energy consumption. 17% of all energy generated internationally is used for lighting, provided through a mix of different lighting technologies, the most recent of which is the Light Emitting Diode (LED).
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